Astronauts Repair $150 Billion Space Station with a Toothbrush and Some Bent Wire
12 replies, posted
[QUOTE]It was both a high drama rescue and a defining moment for implements of oral hygiene. During a hastily scheduled six-and-a-half hour spacewalk yesterday, a NASA astronaut and her Japanese counterpart fixed the broken $150 billion dollar International Space Station. Key to their success: a toothbrush.
So perhaps that’s a bit dramatic, but it’s not untrue. During a grueling eight-hour spacewalk on August 30 (the third-longest in history), the same team--NASA astronaut Sunita Williams and JAXA astronaut Akihiko Hoshide--attempted to replace the ISS’s main bus switching unit (MBSU), a component of the station’s power system. But a stuck bolt kept them from being able to complete the mission. Unable to proceed as planned, they connected the new MBSU and tethered it to the exterior of the station. In other words, they had some duct tape on the problem but still needed to complete the fix.
Engineers on the ground went to work in what reportedly was a scene not unlike the one depicted in the Ron Howard film Apollo 13. Using only implements that can be found aboard the ISS, the team worked around the clock to devise a solution to the problem (though in contrast to the Apollo 13 incident, the astronauts board the ISS were never in any real or immediate danger).
The engineers came up with some new tools for the astronauts to use to get their stubborn bolts unstuck, including a modified toothbrush and some wires that had been bent to create a kind of brush. The tools were able to lubricate and clear debris from the bolt, enabling the astronauts to pry it free and finish the installation of the MBSU.
Stay tuned: We hear next week the Mars Curiosity Rover is going to build itself a new battery with some sponges, its own brake pads, and a few galvanized washers.
[img]http://www.popsci.com/files/imagecache/article_image_large/articles/spacewalk-hoshide-robotic-arm.jpeg[/img][/quote]
Source: [url]http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2012-09/astronauts-repair-150-billion-space-station-toothbrush-and-some-bent-wire[/url]
Reminds me when Buzz Aldrin (Or Neil Armstrong I don't quite remember) repaired an air filter with the help of a sock when they were on their way back to Earth.
[editline]10th September[/editline]
Fuck I got it all wrong
In other news, Astronauts in chaos over lack of toothbrush, NASA prepping dentists for flight to ISS
[QUOTE=Gears of duty;37615995]Reminds me when Buzz Aldrin (Or Neil Armstrong I don't quite remember) repaired an air filter with the help of a sock when they were on their way back to Earth.[/QUOTE]
not only did you get wrong the first time, you got wrong the second time
then you got wrong the third time
CO[sub]2[/sub] scrubber repair was on 13, not 11
This reminds me of when Buzz Aldrin broke one of the buttons while landing on the moon and had to use a pen to activate it.
[media][URL]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGIo-tqQkoQ[/URL][/media]
Obligatory thread music
[QUOTE=LordCrypto;37616014]not only did you get wrong the first time, you got wrong the second time
then you got wrong the third time
CO[sub]2[/sub] scrubber repair was on 13, not 11[/QUOTE]
Read it many years ago, so I barely remember anything. Sorry.
Astronaut macgyver
Why don't they have these common tools aboard anyways?
[QUOTE=reedbo;37624382]Why don't they have these common tools aboard anyways?[/QUOTE]
They're heavy it costs lots of money to launch a heavy rocket.
[QUOTE=reedbo;37624382]Why don't they have these common tools aboard anyways?[/QUOTE]
Because weight and cost.
Every last ounce of weight matters when launching a rocket out of the atmosphere. Going just a pound overweight on a rocket needing to achieve escape velocity can cause the entire craft to come crashing back down to earth due to lack of the energy needed to escape earths gravity.
Each mission going to space will only carry the bare essentials to save weight and money. They aren't going to include some random specialized wrench and gear lube to unstick troublesome parts that they don't think will ever happen.
I read somewhere that for every extra pound of weight it requires 20 extra pounds of fuel to achieve escape.
[QUOTE=Vita;37626452]I read somewhere that for every extra pound of weight it requires 20 extra pounds of fuel to achieve escape.[/QUOTE]
Sounds about right.
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